The 11 children join more than 600 people in Australia on "temporary transfers" from offshore detention, reports say.

It is thought to be one of the largest groups to be transferred since offshore detentions began in 2013.

Can they stay in Australia?

Under a controversial policy, asylum seekers intercepted while travelling to Australia by boat are banned from ever resettling there.

Home Affairs Secretary Michael Pezzullo said permanent asylum in Australia would not be granted to those transferred for medical treatment because it could encourage "perverse behaviours", including causing serious harm to instigate a transfer.

"Treatment in Australia is absolutely available for those who require it," he said on Monday.

People who have received medical transfers live with persistent uncertainty about whether they will be forced to return to Nauru, the UN's refugee agency has said.

Recent attention has focused on child migrants in the Pacific nation, who suffer from mental heath issues which have led to cases of self-harm, said the doctors' group, Médecins Sans Frontières.

How many migrants are there?

Many of the children on the island have lived most of their life in detention, with no idea of what their future will be.

Image copyrightWorld Vision Australia Image caption
Two-year-old Roze's family has lived on Nauru for five years

Some 652 people - including 52 children - are still left on the island, according to the latest official figures; they are made up of 541 refugees, 23 failed asylum seekers, and 88 people of undetermined status.